Chapter Text
Sleeping soundlessly was a rare occurrence for Bob. But there he was, under his weighted blanket - far heavier than the average one made for your typical human - lying on his side, with no nightmare troubling him. He would have continued like that for a few more hours if it wasn’t for a soft knock on the door that had woken him up.
His brown eyes slowly opened just before he heard another set of knocks. He recognized the three consecutive patterns and always knew who was behind the door.
“Come in,” he said in a groggy voice.
The door swung open, and Yelena entered, smiling calmly. Her smile held a brightness usually reserved for him and her father. That, in turn, made him smile, even if it was smaller and shyer.
“Sorry, were you still sleeping?” she asked as she walked over to him.
“Yeah…” He rubbed at his eyes before letting out a tired yawn.
She sat on the edge of his bed and observed him for a moment. Then she reached over. Her fingers brushed aside the loose strands of hair on his face, tucking them behind his ear or head.
He closed his eyes, enjoying the tender gesture, it was warm and loving, unlike the ones that struck him without a second thought or the ones that avoided him as if he was some disease.
Tears, like they usually did, began to sting his eyes at that moment, which only got him more upset.
“I told you to come to me if you’re having trouble sleeping,” Yelena said as she pulled her hand back into her lap.
He took the moment to pull his emotions together - even though Yelena wouldn't want him hiding them from her. “You were already asleep on the couch,” he mumbled, pulling the blanket up to his shoulders, and hesitantly opening his eyes to meet her gaze.
“So what?”
“I didn’t want to wake you up. You looked really tired yesterday after that mission in New Jersey.”
She rolled her eyes. “I wasn’t that tired.”
“You were snoring…And you only snore when you're tired.”
“I do not snore.” She playfully nudged him on the shoulder, amused. Bob couldn’t help but smile wide for a second before quickly forcing it back into a smaller one.
“Anyway,” she said, standing from the bed. “Just wanted to let you know we’re heading out again, but we shouldn’t take too long. Valentina’s dragging us to some lame photoshoot with some government officials.”
“Doesn’t sound so lame.” He said then something began to bother him - like he was forgetting something...
“Have you met government people? They’re soooo boring,” she said dramatically. “It’s all about laws and policies, acting nice, and some other shit I honestly couldn’t care less about. And to tell you the truth, I’d rather play that video game you’ve been wanting me to try all month.”
He blinked in surprise. “You do?”
“Yeah, sure, why not? Mario Party, was it?”
“We’re going to need at least two others, though,” he pointed out, sitting up with excitement blooming in his chest.
“Walker and Ava will join us.”
“Join what?” Ava asked, passing by just in time with an eyebrow raised.
“Mario Party,” Bob grinned at her.
“Who the fuck is Mario?” Ava frowned.
“And I was supposed to have the more fucked up childhood,” Yelena sighed, grabbing the doorknob and turning to look at Bob. “I’ll text you. And remember, don’t open the door to strangers,” she teased before closing the door.
His joyful mood vanished once Yelena was out of sight.
Once again, he was going to be alone in the tower…
He then heard his phone vibrate on the nightstand. He picked it up and saw that Alexei had sent him a message.
Alexei: I got the last ingredients for that cheese noodle recipe!
Alexei: I put them on the left bottom shelf under the sink!
Bob’s eyes widened in realization.
That’s right - Yelena’s birthday!
At least, the day Alexei and his former partner used to celebrate it. The very reason Bob had spent most of the night planning how to best decorate the cake he was going to bake, using a recipe he found online last week - one he was sure Yelena would love.
Because who didn’t love chocolate cake?
He pulled a notepad from beneath his pillow. It had a list of everything he had to do once Yelena and the others left the building. He was so glad she had woken him up in time.
While he read the recipe Alexei had given him - Yelena’s favorite food, mac and cheese with hot sauce and green beans - he smiled warmly, but then suddenly there was an anxiety in the pit of his stomach that made his smile vanish.
He wasn’t a great cook, nor had he ever baked anything in his life. He usually just made eggs, sandwiches, or cereal.
What if he completely messed up making the mac and cheese?
Then again, Alexei assured him it was easy. All he had to do was follow the instructions he had given him and things would turn out just fine.
But the cake was a different story…
“You got this…” he mumbled to himself, his fingers digging into his notepad and phone. “Just… follow the instructions… You can at least do that…”
He at least hoped so. Because for the past weeks, he’d been feeling like a burden once again for everyone around him. Especially after having another one of his terrible ‘episodes’ that threw Bucky to give everyone the cold shoulder for a few days.
He sighed as he laid back down to stare at the ceiling hanging over him.
“It’s just cooking and baking… that’s all you’re doing,” he told himself. “What’s the worst thing that can happen?”
Then again… he somehow always found ways to make things worse…